Obese patients may experience increased morbidity from excess weight. The extra weight places a strain on body circulatory systems, respiratory systems, and the digestive system, and can stress or overload body organs causing numerous medical conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and sleep apnea. It can also increase the risk of a major coronary event. Bariatric medicine is focused on the prevention, control, and treatment of obesity. A change in diet, drugs, and surgery are the most common tools used to reduce a patient's caloric intake, reduce their weight, and save their lives.
Bariatric surgical techniques often result in dramatic weight loss for the morbidly obese. These surgeries may include stomach stapling to create a small pouch, intestinal bypass surgery, gastric banding, placement of a large filler object in the stomach to reduce the internal volume of the stomach, and gastric sleeves. The advent of laparoscopic surgery, also known as “keyhole” surgery, has revolutionized many surgical procedures. It has boosted demand for bariatric surgery, in particular, because it generally requires only a few small incisions resulting in a reduced recovery time.
Natural orifice transendoscopic surgery, herein referred to as NOTES, generally requires no incisions because instruments, such as staple guns, can be inserted through the mouth and snaked down the esophagus. If the work to be done involves the lower portion of the intestines, the instruments can be inserted through the rectum. Using a natural orifice like the mouth or the rectum can further reduce patient and hospital costs as anesthesia is generally not required. The elimination of anesthesia may also make such procedures less risky. Frequently, simply gaining access to the organ that is the subject of the surgery results in a substantial portion of the trauma to the patient during many medical procedures. Reducing this trauma in a safe and effective manner may make such procedures less costly and may make such procedures more widely available and more acceptable to the patient.
FIGS. 1-2 illustrate one prior art fastener used in NOTES procedures to join and anastomose tissue. The illustrated two part fastener is joined by coupling a first fastener part having a male portion with a second fastener part having a female portion. The male portion of the first fastener part may be operably configured to engage in a snap fit connection with the second fastener part. The first and second fastener parts may have laterally extending surfaces to increase the surface area of the fastener to improve tissue retention therebetween.
The fastener illustrated in FIGS. 1-2 may be suitable for retaining tissue therebetween, however, a clinician may be provided with a limited amount of assurance regarding the integrity of the coupling between the first and second fastener parts. Should the snap fit of the fastener fail, the joined tissue may separate resulting in a potentially life threatening complication. It would therefore be advantageous to provide a fastener operably configured to join tissue that provides an improved measure of assurance to a clinician regarding the integrity of the coupling.